These days, Ohio State doesn’t have enough healthy players to play five-on-five with its team in practice, and it has struggled mightily on the road.
Yet when the No. 23 Buckeyes (18-9, 8-8 Big Ten) stroll into Lincoln, Nebraska, on Thursday for a nighttime matchup with the Cornhuskers, they’ll be the clear favorites. While they just beat Maryland on Sunday, Nebraska hasn’t won a game since Jan. 7. Fred Hoiberg’s team is currently riding a 12-game losing streak.
| Who | Where | When | TV |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nebraska (7-20, 2-14) | Pinnacle Bank Arena (Lincoln, Nebraska) | 9 p.m. | ESPN2 |
Still, because of the injuries – Kyle Young is a game-time decision with a high ankle sprain – and issues playing away from the Schottenstein Center, the mid-week showdown against a team currently ranked second-to-last in the Big Ten might be a tad bit more dangerous than those in Columbus would hope.
“They spread you out offensively,” Holtmann said. “Fred does an amazing job with his scheming. They've obviously shot it really well here, outscored us in the second half, 43-42, here at our place, and caused us a lot of problems. It'll be a great environment. We'll need to play well.”
Three Key Cornhuskers
Thorir Thorbjarnarson (6-foot-6, 206 pounds)
You don’t have to pronounce his name to know Ohio State needs to watch out for him. Thorbjarnarson led Nebraska in both points (15) and rebounds (6) in his team’s loss to Ohio State in January. Since then, he’s put up double-figures points in six of 10 games. He averages 8.9 points per game, and he’s efficient as a scorer. Within conference play, Thorbjarnarson ranks third in the Big Ten with an effective field-goal percentage of 59.2.
Cam Mack (6-foot-2, 175 pounds)
Whether Mack plays or not could factor into Thursday’s outcome. He missed Nebraska’s most recent game with an illness, and Hoiberg told local reporters on Wednesday that Mack’s a game-time decision. When he’s healthy, which he’s been for all but the most recent game, he’s one of the Cornhuskers’ most productive players. Mack averages 12 points, 6.5 assists and 4.7 rebounds in 34.6 minutes per game.
Yvan Ouedraogo (6-foot-9, 260 pounds)
Unlike the rest of the Big Ten, Nebraska doesn’t have a dominant big man. Ouedraogo is still someone to pay attention to, though. The French freshman averages 5.8 points and 6.1 rebounds in 21 minutes per game. He had 10 points and five boards in 30 minutes in the season’s first Ohio State-Nebraska meeting.
Three Key Buckeyes
E.J. Liddell
Should Young not play on Thursday, and all signs point to him missing the game due to a high ankle sprain suffered on Sunday, Liddell will be forced into extended action. It’s likely that Holtmann frequently plays a three-guard lineup since Nebraska is a backcourt-heavy team. But Liddell will have an integral role in the frontcourt. He’s had back-to-back strong performances.
“I would just say his energy off the bench, blocking shots, getting offensive rebounds, finishing around the rim, making mid-range shots,” CJ Walker said of Liddell’s contributions. “I just feel like he brings a lot to our team on both sides of the ball. Like Duane said, he's prepared for the moment.”
Duane Washington Jr.
Consistency wouldn’t be a word that anyone could use to describe Washington’s season. But recently, as he has taken over more ball-handling duties, he’s learning to make smarter decisions on the court. He hasn’t turned the ball over the past two games, scoring at least 13 points in each of them. Now’s the time Ohio State needs him to get on a roll.
Luther Muhammad
Welcome to Muhammad’s renaissance. In the past five games, he has connected on 11-of-22 3-pointers, including four triples in a season-high 22-point performance in the win against Maryland on Sunday. Combined with his prowess on the defensive end of the court, Muhammad has shown flashes of becoming the impact two-way player the Buckeyes need down the stretch. Can he remain consistent with his shot on the road? That’s the test on Thursday.
Three Numbers To Know
Turnover Percentage
This season, the Cornhuskers don’t have many positives. But they can say they don’t beat themselves (though that might just be a nice way of saying they get beat consistently by everybody else). Nebraska’s ninth in the nation – and first in the Big Ten – with a turnover rate of 15.3 percent.
Rebounding Rate
Nebraska, one of the shortest teams in the Big Ten, doesn’t have much depth or experience in its frontcourt, so it’s naturally one of the conference’s worst performers on the glass. The Cornhuskers, in Big Ten play, ran second-to-last in offensive-rebounding rate and dead last in opponent offensive-rebounding rate. Since it’s likely the Buckeyes will be without Young, others will have to step up to take advantage of Nebraska’s noteworthy deficiency.
Adjusted Efficiency
Hoiberg’s in town, but Nebrasketball decidedly isn’t back yet. Within conference games, the Cornhuskers are 14th in offensive adjusted efficiency and 12th in adjusted defensive efficiency. It doesn’t get much better overall, where they’re 143rd in offensive adjusted efficiency and 139th in adjusted defensive efficiency. Not great!
Other Notes
- Since Ohio State lacks depth right now, Holtmann said Justin Ahrens will have an uptick in minutes, and he named Alonzo Gaffney and Ibrahima Diallo as two players who might be called upon.
- Holtmann says DJ Carton has not returned to the basketball team, though he is back to taking classes in Columbus: “He's not been back with the group. We're really excited; it's great to have DJ back here on campus. Great to have him back. He's just resumed academic activities.”
- Holtmann on Gaffney’s season: “I certainly think Alonzo can give us some minutes. I'm excited to be able to see him in action. And he's done that throughout the year at various times. He had a knee sprain, had some flu issues just that have kept him out of some stuff. But he's been healthy here for a little while now.”
- Holtmann on whether a six-man rotation will work going forward: “I don't think it's feasible for the long-term, no. I don't think that's sustainable. We're going to need Justin, as well as some of those other guys that I mentioned to be ready to go. I don't think that's sustainable.”
- Holtmann on how Ohio State can compensate when it doesn’t make 3-pointers: “Have to be better defensively. We have to be more consistent, better defensively. We have to find ways to score through the paint, whether the drive or the offensive rebound or the post-ups. Just have to be better defensively.”
How It Plays Out
When Ohio State beat Nebraska, 80-68, in mid-January, it did so at home and with Young and Carton in the starting lineup. On Thursday, the Buckeyes will be on the road, and they’ll likely be without two players who started last month’s game. The result, though, should be the same.
Ohio State has a size advantage inside, talent edges across the board and has found a bit of a groove in the past few weeks. The one thing that’s still a bit unsettling? The Buckeyes haven’t fared consistently well on the road.
Prediction: Ohio State 75, Nebraska 65
